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Last week, the 2025 Taste of Asia Food Brand Summit returned in grand style — this time, on water. Held aboard a private cruise, the summit welcomed over 200 influential founders, investors, tech providers and supply chain experts in a closed-door format designed for deep, strategic exchange.
Sponsored by MenuSifu, North America’s leading restaurant tech provider, this year’s Chicago summit delivered a commanding lineup of panels and keynotes aimed at unlocking systematic growth for Asian food brands in the U.S. From replicating restaurant models across states to decoding the cultural and technological shifts shaping consumer palates, every session offered high-caliber insights from those driving the industry forward.
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Key highlights included:
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Lee Kum Kee’s executive chef Fred Wang and Essent Capital’s Cosmo Hu explored how flavor innovation can support localization and scalability across demographics.
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Automation and AI were front and center with Botrista CEO Sean Hsu and Workstream’s Andrew Wang outlining tech-enabled paths to labor efficiency and higher margins.
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Former Yum China executive Dongfeng Wang and UNLV professor Dr. Zhixian Li previewed their forthcoming book on global food and beverage expansion, offering a strategic framework grounded in field experience.
A defining moment of the summit was the official launch of the 2025 North America Asian Food Trends white paper, jointly developed by TOA, The Restaurateur and Wefood Capital, with sponsorship from MenuSifu. Drawing on proprietary research and market case studies, the white paper identifies key growth drivers, category evolutions and actionable blueprints for replicating success in new markets. Limited-edition copies were gifted to VIP attendees onboard.
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More than just a summit, TOA Chicago aimed to mainstream Asian cuisine across North America. With presenting sponsor MenuSifu — whose integrated POS and restaurant management platform supports over 15,000 restaurants — and its investment arm Wefood Capital, the ecosystem for Asian food innovation continues to deepen.
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As TOA looks ahead to upcoming editions in Houston and Los Angeles, its mission remains clear: to elevate Asian food from niche to norm, empowering brands to scale boldly, sustainably and with cultural integrity.
The news and editorial staffs of the Chicago Tribune had no role in this post’s preparation.